APPENDIX, No. IX.

MR. HENRY, noticing assurance, has thus expressed himself:

Assurance of God's love, peace of conscience, and joy in the Holy Ghost, are the glorious privileges of true believers. Justification is the root, and these are the branches from it.

There is a low and weak degree of assurance, where the evidences of the love of God to our souls are not full and clear; a mixture of much doubting and fear. Even this produces peace. There is a strong, and high degree, which is called full assurance; clear evidence, and little doubting. This produces joy.

Peace and joy differ thus ;-peace stills and quiets the soul, but joy stirs and transports it. Peace is joy in the bud and blossom; joy is peace in the ripe fruit. There are more believers who have peace than have joy, because there are more whose evidences are dark and weak, and it is their own fault.

There is the assurance or certainty of the object; that is, God's love is sure and certain to a believer. He doth love him now, Proverbs, viii. 17. He did love him from everlasting, Jeremiah, xxxi. 3. He will love him to the end, John, xiii. 1.

There is also the assurance and certainty of the subject; that is, -this, or that particular believer is certain that God loves him now, and hath loved him from everlasting, and will love him to everlasting.

Many a child of God gets to heaven who is never able to say,— I am sure I have an interest in the love of God. Yet this assurance is attainable, as may be proved from those scriptures which make it our duty to labour after it, 2 Peter, i. 10; and from scripture instances of such as did attain it, both in the Old Testament, Job, xix. 25; and in the New, 2 Corinthians, v. 1; Galatians, ii. 20; 1 John, iii. 19; iv. 13.

Where it is attained, it sweetens all conditions.* We then see all our mercies, and all our crosses, not only consist with, but flow from the love of God. It is a great furtherer of obedience. None walk so close with God as those who have clearest evidences of his love. Assurance makes a man truly willing to die, 2 Corinthians, v. 1, &c.; Luke, ii. 29.

Labour after it. How? Not without diligence. Bring thy condition to the word of God. See what it saith of those who shall be saved, and then inquire,—Am I such an one? John, iii. 36.-- Do I believe?-Do I accept of Jesus Christ? Romans, viii. 9.-Have I the Spirit of Christ? 1 John, iii. 14.-Do I love the people of God?+

Reading in some of my dear father's [Philip Henry] diary, kept in a little almanack, I find excellent things; e. g. From,The rather give diligence to make your calling and election sure, -he notes; This has many sweet advantages. It promotes godliness, keeps humble, is got with pains, &c. A man may be a child of God who hath it not; yet such will seek and press after it. To which he adds ;-I have both sought, and found it, in some poor measure. Lord, increase it every day, more and more, unto full assurance!+

Grace, with assurance, is no less than heaven let down into the soul. Bishop Hopkins. Works, v. 3, p. 72, ed. 1809.

+ Scripture marks of those who shall be saved, are, Faith in the Lord Jesus, John, iii. 16; vi. 47. Love to God, 1 Corinthians, ii. 9; obedience to his commandments, Hebrews, v. 9; Matthew, vii. 21; John, x. 27, 28; faithfulness in his service, Matthew, xxv. 21, 23. Perseverance to the death, Revelations, ii. 10. P. Henry, Orig. MS.

Mrs. Savage. Diary. Orig. MS.

APPENDIX, No. X.

AMONG Mr. Henry's papers the following statement has been preserved; and, as it appears to have been placed in the hands of Miss Matthews, and may be of use to others, especially in like circumstances, it is here introduced. It may be regarded as a gratifying specimen of the prudence, the simplicity, and devotional frame of mind, for which the writer is so deservedly eminent:

April 16.

Day of Prayer and Fasting.

What warrant for this duty?

Answer. From Philippians, iv. 6;—In every thing, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God.

If in every thing, then, surely, in a thing of so much weight as marriage, Colossians, iii. 17.

But why are friends called?

Answer. We are commanded, Galatians, vi. 2, to bear one another's burdens; to sympathize with each other in all our concernments; to weep with them that weep, and to rejoice with them that rejoice. David's practice, calling others to join with him, Psalm, xxxiv. 3. The command, in case of sickness, James, v. 14, 16. Besides, Vis unita fortior; Many hands make light work. For what end is this duty?

Answer. There are many ends of it. These are some of the chief, which are fit to be communicated::

1. To bless God, who hath ordered things so in his providence, as to bring things to the pass they are at; in this plain way,-more comfortable to us, less offensive to others, who, not knowing the grounds we proceeded on, might have drawn ill consequences from it, and sinned by our example.

2. To make atonement for sin in the blood of Christ, James, 15. In general, for all the sins of our single state. In particular, for miscarriages in the carrying on of this affair;-distrust of God, unbelief, impatience; distractions occasioned by it; irregularities of affection. It being my desire, that no guilt may go with me into that condition, which may be as poison and gall, but that I may enter into it as innocent as Adam, in the day when he was married in the garden.

3. To beg the presence, and the favour of God, which is the happiness and sweetness of every condition and relation, that he will own and bless us.

4. To beg a frame of heart suited to the condition; that, as Saul had another spirit given him when he was crowned, so we may have when we are married. As cares and burdens will be new, so strength may be renewed also to bear them; as temptations will be new, so sufficient grace may be bestowed to resist them; as comforts will be new, so a heart may be given to enjoy God in them, and to sit loose from the creature; as duties will be new, so we may be enabled to perform them, that we may live together as heirs of the grace of life.

5. In reference to events as to outward things; that the Lord will take into his own hand the disposal of them, and quiet our hearts in what he determines, whether it be for the worse, or for the better. That, if he see good, he will please to grant us the comfortable fruits and pledges* of marriage. +

*So children were simply called by the Latins ;-pignora,―pledges. See Milton's Poetical Works, ut supra, v. 6, p. 36, note.

+ P. Henry. Orig. MS.

APPENDIX, No. XI

SOME of these records being still preserved, the following selection. will not be unacceptable :

How far may a man go towards heaven, and yet fall short? In general; a great way, Mark xii. 34. Almost a Christian, Acts, xxvi. 28.

In particular; a man may have a great deal of knowledge, 1 Corinthians, xiii. 1,2; even so much, as to teach others, Matthew, vii. 22. He may be free from many, nay, from any gross sins, Luke, xviii. 11; he may perform, not only some, but all manner of external duties of religion;-pray, fast, give alms, Matthew, vi. 1, 2, &c. He may be a lover of good men, as Herod, Pharaoh, Darius. He may repent after a sort, as Ahab; and believe, after a sort, as Simon Magus. He may suffer much for religion, as, no doubt, Judas did, while a retainer of Christ. If a man may go thus far, and yet fall short, then what will become of those who go not near so far? Then, what need have we to look about us, and to make sure of regeneration, and sincerity, which are things that certainly accompany salvation!

What are the common hinderances of men's salvation?

Ignorance, John, iv. 10; unbelief, John, v. 40; love of the world, 2 Timothy, iv. 10; pride,* men will not stoop to be saved by the righteousness of Christ, Romans, x. 3; nor to be ruled by his laws, Luke, xix. 14; prejudice against the ways of God, and against the company that walk in them; their paucity, their poverty; presumption upon God's mercy, and upon long life. See that none of these things hinder us, especially now being forewarned.

See a striking illustration of this subject, in "The Christian in Complete Armour, by William Gurnall, M. A.” 2nd part, p. 73, 4to, 1658.